SACRAMENTO -- The county district attorney says Republican state Sen. Roy Ashburn's blood-alcohol level was .14 percent when he was arrested on suspicion of drunken driving after leaving Faces, a gay bar and nightclub.

Ashburn has voted against every gay rights measure the senate has voted upon, according to Project Vote Smart.

The California Highway Patrol says the Bakersfield lawmaker was arrested early Wednesday after he was spotted driving erratically. Ashburn was taken to the Sacramento County Jail, booked and then released.

Ashburn, the married father of four, was reportedly driving with a male passenger who was not identified.

A spokeswoman for the district attorney's office, Shelly Orio, said Thursday that a breath test showed Ashburn's blood alcohol level was .06 percent above the legal limit.

He was released on $1,400 bond.

The lawmaker was a no-show on the Senate floor Thursday. The state-owned vehicle he was driving when he was arrested has been impounded at the Capitol, Senate sergeant-at-arms Tony Beard Jr. said.

A married father of four, career politician/Bakersfield RINO left a gay bar around 2 a.m., registered .14 on the breathalyzer when arrested in a state-owned vehicle, and the unknown male in his car has yet to be identified.

Allow me to sum up: A married father of four, career politician/Bakersfield RINO left a gay bar around 2 a.m., registered .14 on the breathalyzer when arrested in a state-owned vehicle, and the unknown male in his car has yet to be identified.

I dont think theres anything hypocritical or wrong about being gay and at the same time believing in upholding the traditional definition of marriage.

I agree. Being a woman didn't mean one automatically thought ERA was the way to go, either. Not that I'm defending drunk driving or cheating on your marriage, but certainly I don't see what those activities or your preferences have to do with your view of the definition of marriage or what should be law.

>> A married father of four, career politician/Bakersfield RINO left a gay bar around 2 a.m., registered .14 on the breathalyzer when arrested in a state-owned vehicle, and the unknown male in his car has yet to be identified.

Completely repugnant.

SnakeDoc

26
posted on 03/05/2010 11:06:43 AM PST
by SnakeDoctor
(Do you know if the hotel is pager friendly? [...] I'm not getting a sig on my beeper.)

Maybe I’m missing something. Things aren’t always as they seem. Just because he was in a gay bar with a male friend doen’t mean that he is a hypocrite nor gay. I have a gay friend that isn’t in favor of special privileges for gays. There are straights that go to gay bars too.

38
posted on 03/05/2010 11:16:29 AM PST
by oneamericanvoice
(Support freedom! Support the troops! Surrender is not an option!)

>> And if you are rolling out of a gay barn so drunk off your a$$, you are an idiot for blowing.

Par for the course... you’re also an idiot for being in a gay bar, for leaving a gay bar with a dude in tow, for being drunk off your ass, for betraying your wife and FOUR kids, and for “blowing” anything (breathalyzer or otherwise).

Sounds like an idiot from top-to-bottom (no pun intended).

SnakeDoc

42
posted on 03/05/2010 11:20:10 AM PST
by SnakeDoctor
(Do you know if the hotel is pager friendly? [...] I'm not getting a sig on my beeper.)

>> Things arent always as they seem. Just because he was in a gay bar with a male friend doent mean that he is a hypocrite nor gay. I have a gay friend that isnt in favor of special privileges for gays. There are straights that go to gay bars too.

He’s married with FOUR kids. He left a gay bar with a guy. He drove drunk. Some example. If he was just an unsuspecting straight married father-of-four ... he’s too stupid to govern.

SnakeDoc

45
posted on 03/05/2010 11:22:37 AM PST
by SnakeDoctor
(Do you know if the hotel is pager friendly? [...] I'm not getting a sig on my beeper.)

These laws are very local, so check your own state, but in mine, WA... If you refuse the breathalyzer, your license is revoked for a year - which is much worse than the possible suspension you may get, if convicted, going to trial. As it is now, with other options you can negotiate in a plea, your license may not be suspended at all.

Revocation is as if you never had a license. When your revocation period is up, you must retake the driving test like a 16 year old.

The revocation will take place regardless of the outcome of your DUI trial, because the breathalizer is a condition of your license. So it's not a 5th ammendment issue, because your license is a privilege.

This presumes a breathalizer given after arrest.

Roadside breathalizers used to gather probable cause, like any other roadside sobriety tests, can be refused. You do not have to walk the line. You do not have to say the alphabet backwards or do any other roadside tests. They'll probably arrest you anyway, but at least they don't have you acting a fool on camera. Once arrested, you should not refuse the breathalizer. They can, and will, order a blood test and get your BAC anyway.

The breathalyzer is only part of the evidence, *after* your arrest. Assuming the officer can meet probable cause for the arrest, which isn't hard.

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